14 BG
Avatar Roku and Master Kelsang eventually let their casual conversation drift down the high stone corridors until they reached a wide, open-air balcony. From this vantage point, they could look straight down into the upper courtyard, where Tanza was in the middle of practicing the Fire Sage forms.
Down below, the young girl was smoothly flowing through the circular sequences alongside Jian, her tiny hands carving paths through the air and generating small, swirling vortexes of wind that beautifully mirrored the loops of the young firebender's flames.
Roku, with his arms crossed, lifted his arm to gently comb his fingers through his beard in thought, smiling warmly at the sight of Kelsang's apprentice. "Ah, to be young again, and see if one can bend their element with another style…" He chuckled wryly. "It warms my heart to see a young airbender so eager to explore if she can blend our nations' styles."
He glanced Kelsang's way beside him. "The world is divided, yet a child sees only the potential harmony between the wind and the flame."
Beside him, Master Kelsang watched her apprentice with a quiet, knowing look. Carrying the open, unconventional mind of a true wanderer, Kelsang didn't feel a shred of traditional disapproval. She deeply appreciated that Tanza was bold enough to experiment outside the rigid dogma of the Air Temples.
But as she watched the sharp, subtle tension in Tanza's wrists and the slightly-too-heavy plant of her heels, Kelsang's smile turned thoughtful. Innovation was a beautiful gift, but it was also a dangerous beast if handled incorrectly.
She nodded with a soft smile. "She has a brilliant mind…" Kelsang said softly, her tone steady while carrying a hint of protective caution. "My former master told me, before I left with her, that Tanza grew up doing nothing but playing with her airbending, always training with it like it was both a gift and a tool."
But soon, Kelsang's mouth turned into a subtle frown. "But she is young, and there is more for her to learn. Fire and air are a volatile mix." She gave Roku a passing glance of her own. "Bending is not just about copying shapes. One must know the basics, the foundations, and the mindset—of which I am sure she is already learning all three in due time right now."
Kelsang looked back down to see Tanza continuing the circular motions of the Fire Sage firebending style. She watched as a small ball of compressed wind gathered at her apprentice's fingertip, only to pop loudly like a cork. Tanza shook her stung finger, paused, and then continued, moving much slower and more mindfully on her next attempt.
Tanza knew to slow down and learn from her mistakes, a trait that would be highly important later on in her lessons.
"If she tries to push the wind with the raw, heavy force of fire, she risks losing control like that... but she is already learning," Kelsang said, her smile returning appreciatively. Her apprentice was indeed a fast learner. "I remember when I first tried to implement airbending with a firebending form as a young nomad... I caused quite a nasty wound on my own hand."
She smirked wryly at the memory of her youth before her expression turned focused again. "On our way to the Southern Temple, I will have to sit with her. I need to show her my own style, the balanced way I learned to safely bridge the gap between our cultures, before her sharp mind accidentally creates a disaster she isn't ready to contain."
Roku nodded in quiet agreement, his hand dropped from his beard, while his expression turned deeply reflective. The old man knew the exact trial the young girl was facing, perhaps better than anyone else alive.
He steadily crossed his arms once more, a thoughtful look crossing his features as a deep frown settled on his weathered face. "The temptation to let your first element guide the others is indeed a dangerous pitfall," Roku murmured, his voice laced with the years of wisdom he had gained from being the Avatar of his generation. "When I first discovered I was the Avatar, my firebending was all I knew."
Roku let his eyes drift upward as he pictured the memories flowing through his mind. "When I traveled the world to master Water, Earth, and Air, each one brought its own unique hiccups…" A fond, stray smile crossed his features. "I kept trying to force the rigid power of the flame into the fluid tides of water, and I nearly collapsed my training grounds trying to punch through earthbending forms like a firebender."
He chuckled softly, though his eyes drifted back down to see Tanza in mid-adjustment of her stance in the courtyard. He briefly pondered what his next incarnation would be like, and how Tanza and his next self would handle each other. It was almost ironic, in a way; she was getting to know him before he reached his deathbed, and now she would be able to lay claim to the fact that she knew him as Roku long before she ever met his next self.
He continued to speak after his brief lapse in thought. "It takes time to realize that bending is as much about unlearning as it is about learning…" Roku continued, his eyes watching closely as Tanza snapped her finger out during her Fire Sage style, letting out a small, sharp cut of wind that mimicked the snap of a flame. "I had to learn how to completely break out of my comfort zone, to let the philosophies of the other nations change me from the inside out."
Steadily, he glanced back at Kelsang with a soft smile of his own. "Only then could I safely let the styles mix without tearing myself apart."
Kelsang took that moment to glance back at him with a nod of deep understanding.
"Your apprentice is brilliant, Kelsang," Roku finished warmly. "If she learns that lesson now, she will bypass years of frustration."
Next Day
The morning sun had barely begun to pierce through the heavy volcanic haze of Shuhon island, when the small group made their way back down the mountain ridge.
Walking alongside Master Kelsang and Tanza, Avatar Roku let out a soft contented breath as he adjusted the sleeves of his red robes, "This has been an incredibly interesting visit for me." He remarked, with a genuine warmth in his tone, "To simply run into Air Nomads during a trip to this outer port was entirely unexpected, but it is an encounter I deeply welcomed!"
Master Kelsang offered him a serene grateful smile, her steady expression matched the calm morning air, "The pleasure was entirely ours, Avatar Roku." She dipped her head in a bow of thankfulness, and looked back up at him, "I am thankful for our little chat, and I must admit, it has been a true privilege to speak with the Avatar in my lifetime." Her smile crinkled her face in a slight jest.
Roku stopped briefly on the trail, letting a rich, grandfatherly chuckle escape his lips before he gave her a playful, knowing look. "Ah, but you will most likely see the next one in your lifetime as well, Master Kelsang." He shared a look with her, a knowing looking crossed their features, "Considering the cycle, the next Avatar will be a child of the wind. I can only hope they are half as patient as you are."
Tanza
Kelsang bowed her head in polite acknowledgment of the joke, though Tanza remained silent. Behind her eyes, her mind memorized the information, even though she, and probably most of the world, already knew the mechanics of the cycle. But the fact that the next Avatar would be an airbender stayed at the forefront of her mind, ever since she had first learned of Avatar Yangchen.
It also painted her people as a massive target. When the Fire Nation inevitably attacked the Earth Kingdom during their campaign, they would no doubt send out spies before they struck the next Avatar, trying to eliminate them after he or she learns of their legendary status within the next two or three decades.
Swept up in her inner thoughts, they soon reached the harbor's high landing platform. The contrast between the creatures resting there was striking. Master Kelsang's massive adult sky bison, Juun, was already packed and waiting, his thick white fur rustling in the morning breeze. Beside him, young Hachi looked well-rested and entirely ready to take off.
A full night of rest had completely returned the calf's youthful energy, and he was currently nudging Juun's leg with eager, happy snorts the moment he spotted them. Across the platform, Roku's red dragon was coiled like a sleeping mountain of crimson scales, his hot breath venting softly into the cool morning air.
Roku was the first to step onto the platform's edge before he turned and faced the two of them fully. A sudden, quiet solemnity settled over his features. "I am truly glad I had the chance to speak with Air Nomads once more before my time is up…" he remarked softly. A wistful smile graced his features, carrying the heavy weight of an old man who fully understood his own mortality.
For her part, Tanza noted that Roku held no desperate desire for the grandeur of immortality. He welcomed his eventual death, even though he wielded such godlike power at his fingertips. If anything, it spoke well enough of his true character.
While he spoke, she caught his eyes drifting down toward her. She kept herself perfectly quiet, unsure of what to say next that would fit her supposed age. Though she knew she could let some of her mature self show, she did her best to look and behave like a wondrous child simply learning about the world. For as a matter of fact, she was, in the end, exactly that: a child on the outside, while on the inside, a wanderlust soul learning about the vast world around her.
She blinked as Roku suddenly smiled, his facial features shifting as a memory dawned on his mind. "Ah, that reminds me!" the Avatar exclaimed gently, reaching into the deep folds of his voluminous red sleeves. "I believe I can pass something off to you for your Fire Sage bending forms, young one!"
With that said, shortly after, Roku pulled out a neatly rolled scroll from his sleeve, its parchment bound tightly by a simple red cord. Tanza noticed it with a perceptive eye, curious as to what was inside, but she kept herself muted and calm.
Instead of giving it directly to her, Roku extended his arm and handed the scroll off to Kelsang, who accepted it with a surprised expression. Her genuine surprise momentarily broke through her calm demeanor as she looked from the red-bound scroll up to the Avatar, hesitant to accept what looked like a sacred, regional text.
Tanza looked between her master and Roku, who in turn noticed her master's hesitation. He raised a hand and waved it off with a warm smile. "No need for concern, Master Kelsang," Roku assured her. "It merely contains the basic, foundational forms of Fire Sage bending."
Inwardly, Tanza's mind celebrated. She would be able to continue right where she had left off during her session with the boy, Jian. 'Assuming the reason is his sentimentality over his own years among airbenders, he's simply extending one last hand to the people he trained with', she reasoned. It made perfect sense; he was the Avatar, and building and keeping rapport with the people of other nations was still at the forefront of his mind.
Meanwhile, Roku continued speaking over Tanza's internal thoughts. "It is not anything secret or restricted." His eyes glinted with amusement while a slight smirk played on his lips. "If anything, it is a mere copy." He let out a soft chuckle, glancing back toward the ridge. "The temple library is overflowing with them. It is among many identical copies that the young sage acolytes learn from in their daily study sessions, so missing this one won't be noticed at all."
He looked down at Tanza, who looked back up at him. He reached down and affectionately mussed his hand into her hair, just as an elderly man would play with a child's hair. "Think of it as a small study guide for you, young one." He removed his hand from her head and tucked it back into his sleeve.
Tanza quickly thanked the elderly Avatar, as it was only right. She palmed her hands together in appreciation, performing the traditional Air Nomad gesture. "I humbly thank you, Avatar sir," she spoke aloud, earning another warm chuckle from Roku.
He looked down at her. "Please, just Roku, or Avatar Roku, young one." He gave her a playful, grandfatherly wink. "Just make sure when you meet the next Avatar, you are a good friend to him, and we're even. Who knows, he might remember you from my memories. I certainly remember some from my own past lives. Why, I've even communed with a few of them once or twice…" He chuckled afterward.
Meanwhile, Kelsang's surprise melted back into her characteristic warmth. She smiled thankfully and accepted the scroll, tucking it securely into the folds of her saffron robes.
Tanza, on the other hand, quietly turned over what Roku had just said to her. 'Very interesting. So he can remember the memories of his past lives. A rather excellent ability to have…' She watched as Roku stared back out toward the ocean. 'He said he can even commune with them? Surely that means they are off in some cycle of an afterlife?'
The best she could parse from that information was that each Avatar was not just one singular soul cycling through multiple lives, but rather, each Avatar was their own distinct person who possessed the unique ability to connect with their 'past selves', if she was reading into Roku's words correctly.
Turning back to them, a wistful smile played across Roku's features, an expression Tanza had seen many times on old people whenever they remembered their younger years. "You know, looking at Tanza yesterday back at the courtyard… it brought back so many memories." He chuckled warmly. "Back when I was a young boy in my hometown, long before I ever knew I was the Avatar, I used to sneak into the local Fire Sage temple archives."
He glanced back up at the fire temple towering over the island. "I would hide away and study those exact forms for hours on end… dreaming of the world beyond my home. I suppose some things never change."
With the gift finally handed over, the old Avatar straightened his posture, signaling that it was time for them to part ways. He offered a respectful, formal bow to the two nomads, bidding them a safe and peaceful farewell. Tanza and her master returned the sentiment.
'Like all old people, even the Avatar is left at the whims of time and nostalgia', Tanza mused silently, before she and Kelsang made their way toward Juun.
But just as Kelsang guided Tanza toward the sky bison's massive saddle, Roku's voice chimed in once more. "Ah, Master Kelsang…"
His voice brought Tanza and her master to a pause, prompting them to turn and face him. Roku's tone had turned deeply tender. "When you and your apprentice finally reach the Southern Temple, please pass on a message for me to Gyatso."
He looked at them with an expression of profound kindness, the heavy burdens of his Avatar standing fading away for just a brief moment. Tanza caught the minute sagging of his shoulders and his relaxed posture. "Tell him that our time together was a grand memory I never forgot. It is a memory I will cherish of our friendship until the very end."
With that out of the way, one final parting was left by someone of the island.
"Wait! Please, wait!"
The distant, frantic shout echoed across the stone platform, cutting through the crisp morning air and prompting all three travelers to turn back toward the mountain path. Sprinting down the final stretch of the incline was young Jian, his small crimson acolyte robes billowing wildly behind him.
He was waving his arm frantically to catch their attention, a tiny red silk pouch clutched tightly in his other fist. A few paces behind him, an older, out-of-breath temple sage was trailing after the boy, shouting for him to slow down but completely unable to match the frantic speed of a determined six-year-old.
Roku let out a warm, amused chuckle at the sight. Master Kelsang, on the other hand, paused at the edge of Juun's saddle and smiled amusedly as she watched the boy make his desperate dash toward the flying beasts.
Tanza quietly pondered what was making the boy run out like he had forgotten something. 'A goodbye, perhaps?' she guessed. They had only done so much in one night.
They had practiced together, he had asked what it was like at her home temple, and she had asked in return how far along he was in his studies. It had been a simple exchange of information, but judging by the fact that the boy was desperately clutching something meant to be handed off to her, it looked like he thought far more of their brief interaction.
Before long, Jian skidded onto the flat stone of the landing platform, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. He dropped his hands to his knees for a brief moment, his face flushed completely red from the intense sprint, before pushing himself upright to face Tanza. He looked incredibly proud of himself for catching them in time.
"I… I made it!" Jian panted, holding his arm out to present a crimson pouch tied by a golden string. He offered it to her with an earnest, hopeful look. "I wanted to give you this before you left! It's a parting friendship gift!" His eyes shone with the childish glint of a boy who believed he had found a true new friend. "I wanted you to have something to remember me by, and to remember our practice last night!"
Tanza blinked, her assumption proven entirely correct. Nonetheless, she gave the boy a respectful smile and stepped forward. "Your… gift is…thank you Jian," she nodded, slipping her hand out to accept the small parcel. The moment her fingers brushed against the silk fabric, a distinct, deeply concentrated warmth radiated into her palm, completely defying the cool ocean breeze.
Knowing she was likely going to ask what was inside, Jian beat her to the punch with a broad grin. "It's a Sunstone pebble from the upper caldera!" he explained, a genuine smile breaking across his face as he finally caught his breath. "My friends and I found it during our mountain walk last week!" He chuckled a little awkwardly. "The older Sages teach us that the volcano's heat never truly leaves a Sunstone!"
He gestured eagerly to the gift in her palm. "I heard the Southern Air Temple is supposed to be really high up and cold…" He shrugged shyly, scratching at the back of his head in embarrassment. "…so, I hoped this would keep your hands warm when you're flying! And that you won't forget me!" he added, his face turning an even brighter shade of red.
Tanza looked down at the gift in her hand, unsure of what to feel other than a sort of gratefulness. If anything, this was a highly utilitarian item, not just some sentimental flower or written message. It was a remarkably beneficial gift for her trip to the Southern Temple, a destination her master had mentioned during dinner last night, which Tanza had idly repeated to Jian.
Looking back up at Jian, she offered him a nod and a thin, kind smile. "It's a very beautiful gift. I will make sure to remember you indeed," she calmly remarked aloud.
Internally, however, she was already plotting. 'An opportune networking gift', she thought. 'In a single night, I have potentially gained an informant. If I can train a messenger hawk, I can contact him again someday…'
A winged lemur was completely out of the question for long-distance communication; they were far too easily distracted, and as prey animals, they were highly unreliable. If she utilized this budding friendship correctly, she could secure a permanent, long-term insider on this strategically vital island.
Outside her thoughts, the older sage finally caught up to the platform, huffing heavily as he placed a scolding but gentle hand on Jian's shoulder. "My boy, you're running this old man ragged!" he wheezed.
Tanza and her master offered their final, polite goodbyes before leaping up onto the massive sky bison. Tanza settled onto the secure leather saddle while Kelsang landed gracefully on the back of the beast's massive head.
"Yip yip!" Kelsang called out.
With liftoff, the heavy ground fell away. As Juun surged upward into the morning sky, Tanza's mind drifted away from the sunny docks, slipping seamlessly back into the quiet, torch-lit courtyard from the evening before...
That Previous Night
The sky was steadily creasing into the quiet twilight hours as the training session wound down. Most of the young acolytes began filing back inside the temple doors, their daily practices finished for the day. Only a few remained behind on the cooling stone terrace. Among those who stayed were Tanza, Jian, and a handful of senior masters and novices.
Sister Homura was perfectly willing to sit back and relax against a low stone bench, keeping a gentle, watchful eye over the few children who still wanted to linger and practice their forms. As the sun finally dipped completely below the jagged caldera rim, a few older acolytes stepped forward. With swift, elegant arcs of their hands, they used their firebending to ignite the tall stone torches lining the courtyard, bathing the terrace in a warm, dancing orange light.
Jian was practicing right beside Tanza, still deeply locked in conversation with his new airbender peer. He glanced at her with wide, eager curiosity. "So, what is your temple actually like?" he asked. "Is it just a bunch of towers on a hill like ours?" he asked earnestly, his curiosity like any child would be of wanting to know the wider world.
Tanza shook her head, maintaining her form as she practiced with him, "No, it's very different from the other air temples," she answered simply, her voice light and melodic. "Unlike the others, my home is the Western Air Temple. Our buildings are upside down. They actually hang directly from the cliffside, right underneath the mountain edge."
Jian's eyes instantly sparkled with pure, unadulterated wonder. He stared at her, completely captivated by the mental image of a city clinging to the underside of a canyon. "They hang upside down?" he breathed, his jaw dropping slightly as he tried to picture people walking along roofs suspended over an open abyss. "That sounds amazing! Don't you feel like you're going to fall into the sky every time you step outside?"
Tanza offered a gentle, sweet little laugh to match his enthusiasm. "You get used to it," she answered.
As they smoothly moved through another circular arm sweep under the flickering torchlight, Tanza kept her tone light and casual. She knew Jian was only six years old, so she kept her question completely plain, phrasing it as simple childhood curiosity about life on an island.
"You're so lucky to live right by the ocean," Tanza murmured, her mouth formed into a simple smile as she watched her own hands glide through the air. "Since you're an island boy, you must see so many things." She gave him a passing glance as they practiced more, "Do you get to watch lots of ships go in and out of the harbor every day?"
Jian nodded eagerly, glad to share what he knew, completely oblivious to the real reason behind her question. "Oh, yeah, tons!" he exclaimed, his arms carving out a wide loop of fire that illuminated his grinning face. "Especially lately. My room faces the eastern ridge, and even late at night, I can see the lanterns of the big metal ships coming in from the mainland."
He lowered his voice slightly, leaning a bit closer as they shifted into a deeper leg stance. "The older Sages were talking about it during dinner last week. They said the harbor used to be quiet, but now there are iron ships coming in almost every single hour. They bring in huge piles of black rocks from across the sea, and then they leave packed with heavy wooden crates. It makes the whole lower city smell like sulfur, but the High Sage says we just have to pray for the mountain spirits to clear the air."
Tanza nodded along, offering a look of mild, childish fascination. "Wow, that sounds busy," she remarked softly.
But beneath her listening mask, her internal thoughts were instantly memorizing the information. 'Iron transport ships moving on an hourly rotation, running even through the night', she thought to herself, her eyes tracking the precise rhythm of Jian's next form. 'The black rocks are coal for fuel, and the heavy crates are refined iron ores from the caldera's mines. This port is functioning as a primary supply chain hub, feeding resources directly into the Fire Nation mainland's military complex. The sheer volume means their manufacturing capacity is expanding exponentially!' She thought to herself.
This made perfect sense. If they were to invade a continent as massive as the Earth Kingdom, such staggering logistics would demand that the Fire Nation pull in extraneous amounts of resources.
She offered Jian a bright, encouraging smile, keeping their movements perfectly synchronized under the watchful eye of Sister Homura. She had easily turned a simple childhood chat into noteworthy knowledge for her to utilize later on.
From there, the two made a few more conversational pieces, but none more potent than hearing from a child of how many ships came in and out; after all, there was only so much she could work with from a six year old.